The Sheriff’s Office said Washtock has identified as a male and a female, and that delayed the identification process.

Deputies said Washtock had just started investigating the controversial Michelle O’Connell case.

“(He was) not making plans to die.(He was) making plans to keep his kids safe, knowing that he was going to (die),” said Washtock’s neighbor, Alec Laughlin.

“I couldn’t get into my place for 12 hours,” Laughlin said. “They were locking it down.”

Laughlin lives right across the hall from Washtock at the Laterra Condominiums. He said he knew the victim as Eli.

“He knew that somebody was coming for him, so he rented the place downstairs, didn’t tell anybody, let his kids stay there, and he stayed in his regular place,” Laughlin said. “So, he knew it was coming.”